Finis terrae

Four men set out from a small island village in Britanny. Their goal is an outer island, and they set up to harvest soda from seaweed. It's not long before they settle down to quarreling over things like a lost knife and using drinking water to wash. Eventually back in the village they notice that not all of the usual clouds of smoke from burning seaweed are visible. They determine to set out a couple of boats to investigate, but they quarrel over who is to go.

Jean Epstein's late silent movie is well named. Arcing waves rip the land into rocky shreds in visually compelling images. You cn spot the well-made works of man holding out, the paths carved into crumbling cliffs, and whitewashed buildings, but the only place of greater sanity is the interior of the local tavern, and that is viewed through a narrow doorway, making it small, cramped, and failing. That is clearly by design: the chaos that is the ocean is always on the verge of sweeping everyone and everything away. It is as a story film that the problems arise. Without the many, many titles telling the audience what is going on, there is little coherence to any of it. Perhaps that is by design, but that interpretation is a little too meta for me.

Lately this Germanic Count has been exposing in a public and notorious manner his preference for the more avant-garde silent movements; a daring, experimental and innovative era where the silent pioneers showed how to play with the cinematograph's enormous possibilities.

One of the most outstanding directors of that movement (and French by the way), was Herr Jean Epstein, even though in this occasion, the film that this Count is willing to talk about it is not included inside Epstein's avant-garde and fruitful period. Though it is far from a classic film, "Finis Terrae" demonstrates that Epstein's innovative character always showed in his films, especially during his silent phase.

In "Finis Terrae", Herr Epstein forsakes the avant-garde and chooses a more realistic cinema. The film is a kind of documentary set in French Brittany and part of a trilogy (completed by "Mor Vran" (1931) and "L'Or Der Mers" (1932)) dedicated to that French coastal region for which the director had a special predilection.

Though the film belongs in the documentary genre, Herr Epstein is more interested in the experimentation he can do. He dramatizes the story in a way consistent with his artistic purposes but does not forget to reflect in it the area, the people and customs with their special characteristics. However, the movie lacks the evident ethnologic importance of Herr Flaherty or Herr Grierson's films.

"Finis Terrae" is more lyrical, a visual poem to experiment with. The simple story: four algae collectors are trapped on an island and at a later time are rescued by their neighbors. This very interesting film has a rhythm in its narrative and it's lit in harsh natural way which perfectly reflects the artistic intentions of the French director.

And now, if you'll allow me, I must temporarily take my leave because this Germanic Count has to clarify an existential doubt: To whit, which one is the Great or Small Britain?

By 1929 there was much that had already been achieved, innovated, or introduced in cinema as the silent era came to a close. Even so, especially with the relatively limited technology and knowledge of the time, let alone techniques or ideas that were either brand new or perhaps had not yet come to be in wide use, every feature had the chance to feel fresh and new. Here, early film-making icon Jean Epstein demonstrates an artfulness in the orchestration of most shots and scenes that I don't think would be seen again this heavily until the 1950s, 60s, and 70s; the cinematography, and the fundamental image, is mostly so crisp and clear that one could be forgiven for thinking that this was indeed made only 50 or so years ago, and not almost 100. This is to say nothing of how some shots are framed, nor handheld camerawork, the use of slow motion, overlaid images, tricks of the camera, or manipulated imagery, rapid editing and stylized intertitles - nor the almost documentary-style approach to the picture that weaves together a discrete narrative and a portrait of laborers harvesting seaweed. For that matter, the sea and the rocky landscapes are given a prominence in the movie, and very nearly a vitality of their own, recalling the ingenious silent masterpieces of Swedish legend Victor Sjöström, wherein the very environments were practically their own characters. By all this alone 'Finis terrae' is deeply engrossing, and highly satisfying, a terrific classic that absolutely deserves recognition and remembrance on its own merits, let alone as a surviving treasure of a bygone period in cinema.

And all that still leaves the particulars of this feature to consider. Accordingly working with local non-professionals, and basing his story on real-life events, Epstein gives us a tremendous understated drama of tension, and a certain pensive disquiet. The difficulty of the work itself, the challenges of the weather and season, and dynamics between people are all sufficient fuel in and of themselves to propel a plot; on top of these we're given the tale of a man who in these circumstances has to grapple with an injury, and the dependent nearby town that is increasingly troubled by the signs of something gone awry. By most any point of comparison the storytelling sits on the simpler side of things, but it's all that it needs to be to keep one sturdily engaged and entertained. Strong writing and direction of each scene, and shrewd editing, lets each moment carry its own weight in the story as it unfolds, a weight not truly any lesser than we'd expect of any title to follow in all the years since. Rather, for the strength of every component part - and noting the unexpected power of the climax, which leans even further into emphasis on the sea and the coastline and the parts they play herein - I think this quite stands just as tall as anything else Epstein made, many of its best contemporaries, and even many pictures to follow the advent of talkies. I'm not saying that 'Finis terrae' is an absolute essential must-see for one and all, and I can understand how some modern viewers have difficulty engaging with older fare. Be that as it may, in every capacity I think this is just as robust and outstanding as most anything one might hope to watch, and surely easily surpasses countless other titles. In fact, I had high expectations myself, having previously watched several of the filmmaker's other works, and still I'm impressed with just how rich and satisfying this 1929 feature is.

The momentous skill and intelligence illustrated in the film's craft is reason enough to watch as far as I'm concerned, and that the story is so enjoyable is just icing on the proverbial cake. As a matter of personal preference this may not find equal favor with all, yet I'm so very pleased with just how good the end result is, and throughout the entirety of these eighty minutes I was all but enthralled by one facet or another. As a side note, French post-rock band FAZE performed an improvised score live alongside a showing at a film festival in 2020, and video of the occasion (that is, Epstein's film with their musical accompaniment) is easily found online. The twenty-first century music is a rapturous, flavorful joy in and of itself, and is actually a superb, somewhat atmospheric complement to the movie of many decades past. This, too, is all the more reason to check out 'Finis terrae' if one has the chance, and I believe FAZE significantly bolsters the building air of uneasy suspense that the viewing experience carries as the tale progresses. Ultimately I'm of the mind that this is just as solid and marvelous a classic as most any of its silent kin, nevermind sound successors - it may actually be my favorite of any of Epstein's films that I've seen so far - and I'm happy to give 'Finis terrae' my high, hearty recommendation.

Made when the silent era was coming to an end ,I do not think that "Finis Terrae" can appeal to a modern audience,the way Marcel Lherbier's "L'Homme Du Large"(1920) still can.The latter ,although its depiction of the life in Bretagne is as vivid as colorful and as precise as in Epstein's effort ,was a melodrama ,a genre that the great creators of the silent age (Griffith,Gance)took to unbelievable heights. Besides,Lherbier's pictures,although they were as beautiful as these of Epstein ,had something mad something grandiose which is not present here.

"Finis Terrae" is a very slow-moving film and at times it becomes boring.It would have been a very good short,but at a running time of 80 min+,it's inevitably too long.The plot -taking a wounded man to Ouessant Island- is very thin,and the movie is close to documentary .Nice cinematography but is it enough to make it classic?